NCAA Tournament: Buffalo falls to Kentucky despite second-half run

Two days after completing what was the then-biggest upset of the 2018 NCAA Tournament by obliterating Arizona (something even cooler happened last evening), the Buffalo Bulls have been knocked out of the Big Dance.

Unfortunately for Buffalo, the hot shooting that propelled them into the round of 32 did not carry over into today’s matchup with the Kentucky Wildcats, who emerged victorious in a 95-75 win.

For Kentucky, the key was exposing Buffalo’s glaring size disparity. Kentucky’s frontcourt depth greatly outweighed that of the Bulls. However, that paint dominance extended beyond Kevin Knox, Nick Richards, and Co. to Kentucky’s guards, who were also able to carve Buffalo up inside.

However, this game was not quite the blowout that the final score indicates. When the second half began, the Bulls made a furious charge at Kentucky by cutting the deficit to five with eight minutes remaining. But Kentucky’s athleticism took over, thanks to heroics from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander:

The Buffalo Bulls have nothing to be ashamed of though. Wes Clark and C.J. Massinburg both put up stellar numbers, notching 26 and 18 points, respectively. The MAC Champions became one of the best stories of March this time around, and Nate Oats clearly has this program trending upwards.

Buffalo will be back.